Newsaholic

  The Iranian government has executed two people since protests erupted in September, following the death of a 22-year-old Kurdish woman, Mahsa Amini, in the custody of Iran's so-called "morality police." On Dec. 8, Mohsen Shekari, 23, was the first to be put to death. He was hanged after taking part in protests in Tehran. Four days later, Majid-Reza Rahnavard, also 23, was executed publicly — his body was hanged from a crane in the northeastern city of Mashhad. Like Shekari, he was convicted of "waging war against God," a capital offense. The executions are Tehran's main response to protests that swept the country since Amini's death, and they signal that Iran's clerical leadership feels it has few options other than brute force to quell the unrest. A pro-government TV channel aired audio that was described as Rahnavard's confession to police. NPR could not immediately confirm the authenticity of the audio. "Unfortunately, my own arrow hit...

  Majidreza Rahnavard was hanged "in public" early on Monday in the city of Mashhad , the judiciary announced. A court convicted him of the charge of "enmity against God" after finding he had stabbed to death two members of the paramilitary Basij Resistance Force. Human rights groups have warned that protesters are being sentenced to death after sham trials with no due process. "Rahnavard was sentenced to death based on coerced confessions, after a grossly unfair process and a show trial. This crime must be met with serious consequences for the Islamic Republic," tweeted Mahmood Amiry-Moghaddam, director of Norway-based Iran Human Rights. "Thousands of detained protesters, and a dozen death sentences already issued. There is a serious risk of mass-execution of protesters," he added. The first execution took place last Thursday, triggering international condemnation. Mohsen Shekari, 23, was convicted of "enmity against God" after being f...

Mohsen Shekari was hanged on Thursday morning after being found guilty by a Revolutionary Court of "moharebeh" (enmity against God), state media said. He was accused of being a "rioter" who blocked a main road in Tehran in September and wounded a member of a paramilitary force with a machete. An activist said he was convicted after a "show trial without any due process". "The international community must immediately and strongly react to this execution," Mahmood Amiry-Moghaddam, director of the Norway-based group Iran Human Rights, said in a statement. "If Mohsen Shekari's execution is not met with serious consequences for the government, we will face mass execution of protesters," he added.  The judiciary's Mizan news agency reported that a Revolutionary Court was told that Mohsen Shekari had blocked Tehran's Sattar Khan Street on 25 September and used a machete to attack a member of the Basij Resistance Force, a voluntee...